Your search for: 'author:("Dovier, Agostino")' has returned 11 results. (0.016s) Save search

Authors: Dovier, Agostino

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: In this paper, we summarize the contribution of our research group to the field of Bioinformatics. In particular, we present our approach to the ab-initio solution of the protein structure prediction problem based on constraint/logic programming techniques.

Keywords: Logic programming, constraint programming, bioinformatics

DOI: 10.3233/IA-2011-0013

Citation: Intelligenza Artificiale, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 113-117, 2011

Authors: Ancona, Davide | Dovier, Agostino

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: In this paper we study the semantics of Coinductive Logic Programming and clarify its intrinsic computational limits, which prevent, in particular, the definition of a complete, computable, operational semantics. We propose a new operational semantics that allows a simple correctness result and the definition of a simple meta-interpreter. We compare, and prove the equivalence, with the operational semantics defined and used in other papers on this topic.

Keywords: Foundations of Logic Programming, Denotational Semantics, Coinduction

DOI: 10.3233/FI-2015-1252

Citation: Fundamenta Informaticae, vol. 140, no. 3-4, pp. 221-246, 2015

Authors: Zhou, Neng-Fa | Dovier, Agostino

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: This paper presents our program in B-Prolog submitted to the third ASP solver competition for the Sokoban problem. This program, based on dynamic programming, treats Sokoban as a generalized shortest path problem. It divides a problem into independent subproblems and uses mode-directed tabling to store subproblems and their answers. This program is very simple but quite efficient. Without use of any sophisticated domain knowledge, it easily solves 14 of the 15 instances used in the competition. We show that the approach can be easily applied to other optimization planning problems.

DOI: 10.3233/FI-2013-849

Citation: Fundamenta Informaticae, vol. 124, no. 4, pp. 561-575, 2013

Authors: Dovier, Agostino | Formisano, Andrea | Pontelli, Enrico

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: This paper explores the use of Constraint Logic Programming (CLP) as a platform for experimenting with planning problems in the presence of multiple interacting agents. The paper develops a novel constraint-based action language, ℬMAP , that enables the declarative description of large classes of multi-agent and multi-valued domains. ℬMAP supports several complex features, including combined effects of concurrent and interacting actions, concurrency control, and delayed effects. The paper presents a mapping of ℬMAP theories to CLP and it demonstrates the effectiveness of an implementation in SICStus Prolog on several benchmark problems. The effort is an evolution of previous research on …using CLP for single-agent domains, demonstrating the flexibility of CLP technology to handle the more complex issues of multi-agency and concurrency. Show more

Keywords: Action Description Languages, Multi Agent Planning, Constraint Logic Programming

DOI: 10.3233/FI-2010-359

Citation: Fundamenta Informaticae, vol. 105, no. 1-2, pp. 79-103, 2010

Authors: Fioretto, Ferdinando | Dovier, Agostino | Pontelli, Enrico

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: Distributed Constraint Optimization Problems (DCOPs) have emerged as one of the prominent multi-agent architectures to govern the agents’ autonomous behavior in a cooperative multi-agent system (MAS) where several agents coordinate with each other to optimize a global cost function taking into account their local preferences. They represent a powerful approach to the description and resolution of many practical problems. However, typical MAS applications are characterized by complex dynamics and interactions among a large number of entities, which translate into hard combinatorial problems, posing significant challenges from a computational and coordination standpoints. This paper reviews two methods to promote a hierarchical …parallel model for solving DCOPs, with the aim of improving the performance of the DCOP algorithm. The first is a Multi-Variable Agent (MVA) DCOP decomposition, which exploits co-locality of an agent’s variables allowing the adoption of efficient centralized techniques to solve the subproblem of an agent. The second is the use of Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) to speed up a class of DCOP algorithms. Finally, exploiting these hierarchical parallel model, the paper presents two critical applications of DCOPs for demand response (DR) program in smart grids. The Multi-agent Economic Dispatch with Demand Response (EDDR), which provides an integrated approach to the economic dispatch and the DR model for power systems, and the Smart Home Device Scheduling (SHDS) problem, that formalizes the device scheduling and coordination problem across multiple smart homes to reduce energy peaks. Show more

Keywords: DCOP, GPUs, smart grid, smart homes

DOI: 10.3233/IA-180037

Citation: Intelligenza Artificiale, vol. 12, no. 2, pp. 67-87, 2018

Authors: Bortolussi, Luca | Dovier, Agostino | Fogolari, Federico

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: A protein is identified by a finite sequence of amino acids, each of them chosen from a set of 20 elements. The Protein Structure Prediction Problem is the problem of predicting the 3D native conformation of a protein, when its sequence of amino acids is known. Although it is accepted that the native state minimizes the free energy of the protein, all current mathematical models of the problem are affected by intrinsic computational limits, and moreover there is no common agreement on which is the most reliable energy function to be used. In this paper we present an agent-based framework …for ab-initio simulations, composed by different levels of agents. Each amino acid of an input protein is viewed as an independent agent that communicates with the others. Then we have also strategic agents and cooperative ones. The framework allows a modular representation of the problem and it is easily extensible for further refinements and for different energy functions. Simulations at this level of abstraction allow fast calculation, distributed on each agent. We have written a multi-thread implementation, and tested the feasibility of the engine with two energy functions. Show more

Keywords: Computational biology, agent-based technologies, protein structure prediction, multi-agent optimization

DOI: 10.3233/MGS-2007-3204

Citation: Multiagent and Grid Systems, vol. 3, no. 2, pp. 183-197, 2007

Authors: Dovier, Agostino | Policriti, Alberto | Rossi, Gianfranco

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The first-order theories of lists, multisets, compact lists (i.e., lists where the number of contiguous occurrences of each element is immaterial), and sets are introduced via axioms. Such axiomatizations are shown to be very well-suited for the integration with free functor symbols governed by the classical Clark's axioms in the context of (Constraint) Logic Programming. Adaptations of the extensionality principle to the various theories taken into account is then exploited in the design of unification algorithms for the considered data structures. All the theories presented can be combined providing frameworks to deal with several of the proposed data structures simultaneously. …The unification algorithms proposed can be combined (merged) as well, to produce engines for such combination theories. Show more

Keywords: Axiomatic Set Theory, Unification

DOI: 10.3233/FI-1998-36235

Citation: Fundamenta Informaticae, vol. 36, no. 2-3, pp. 201-234, 1998

Authors: Calegari, Roberta | Denti, Enrico | Dovier, Agostino | Omicini, Andrea

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: In order to enable logic programming to deal with the diversity of pervasive systems, where many heterogeneous, domain-specific computational models could benefit from the power of symbolic computation, we explore the expressive power of labelled systems. To this end, we define a new notion of truth for logic programs extended with labelled variables interpreted in non-Herbrand domains—where, however, terms maintain their usual Herbrand interpretations. First, a model for labelled variables in logic programming is defined. Then, the fixpoint and the operational semantics are presented and their equivalence is formally proved. A meta-interpreter implementing the operational semantics is also introduced, followed …by some case studies aimed at showing the effectiveness of our approach in selected scenarios. Show more

Keywords: logic programming, logic programming, labelled variables, formal semantics, meta-interpretation, situated intelligence

DOI: 10.3233/FI-2018-1695

Citation: Fundamenta Informaticae, vol. 161, no. 1-2, pp. 53-74, 2018

Authors: Dal Palù, Alessandro | Dovier, Agostino | Pontelli, Enrico | Rossi, Gianfranco

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: In recent years, Answer Set Programming has gained popularity as a viable paradigm for applications in knowledge representation and reasoning. This paper presents a novel methodology to compute answer sets of an answer set program. The proposed methodology maintains a bottom-up approach to the computation of answer sets (as in existing systems), but it makes use of a novel structuring of the computation, that originates from the non-ground version of the program. Grounding is lazily performed during the computation of the answer sets. The implementation has been realized using Constraint Logic Programming over finite domains.

Keywords: Answer set programming, logic programming, non-monotonic reasoning

DOI: 10.3233/FI-2009-180

Citation: Fundamenta Informaticae, vol. 96, no. 3, pp. 297-322, 2009

Authors: Tarzariol, Alice | Zanazzo, Eugenia | Dovier, Agostino | Policriti, Alberto

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The main goal of this work is to propose a tool-chain capable of analyzing a data collection of temporally qualified (genetic) mutation profiles, i.e., a collection of DNA-sequences (genes) that present variations with respect to their “healthy” versions. We implemented a system consisting of a front-end, a reasoning core, and a post-processor: the first transforms the input data retrieved from medical databases into a set of logical facts, while the last displays the computation results as graphs. Concerning the reasoning core, we employed the Answer Set Programming paradigm, which is capable of deducing complex information from data. However, since the …system is modular, this component can be replaced by any logic programming tool for different kinds of data analysis. Indeed, we tested the use of a probabilistic inductive logic programming core. Show more

Keywords: Bioinformatics, Big Data Analysis, ASP

DOI: 10.3233/FI-2020-1975

Citation: Fundamenta Informaticae, vol. 176, no. 3-4, pp. 299-319, 2020